Sermon on Luke 13:31-35, for the 2nd Sunday in Lent, "Self-preservation, or self-sacrifice?"
Grace, mercy, and peace to you, from God our Father, and our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, Amen. The Gospel reading from Luke 13, begins with some Pharisees giving Jesus a warning to get out of harms’ way. Herod, known to be a maniacal king, wants to kill Him, they say. By human expectations, Jesus response is strange here--He doesn’t thank the Pharisees for the warning, or accept their advice. Instead He makes a statement of defiance over against Herod, and affirms that He was going to “stay His course” and finish the work He had left. Then He follows with hard words for the city of Jerusalem--but sandwiched in the middle of them is a picture of the remarkable tenderness of God’s love for us. Did Jesus question the sincerity or the motives of their warning? Or was He just undeterred from the job that lay ahead of Him? Certainly before, Jesus had been able to make a safe exit when His life was in danger, but He was also no coward. When He knew His cross drew near, He didn’t run whe...